A truly global marketA Lloyd's of London case study

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Page 4: Lloyd´s: a market, not a company

A market place is a physical or virtual place that enables those with goods or services to sell, to make contact with those who want to buy. Many UK towns have local market places where traders sell their products from stalls to consumers. There are larger markets where bulk trade in meat, fish, flowers and other commodities takes place for resale by local businesses nationwide. New Covent Garden Market in London is one such market, selling fruit and vegetables. Other examples include Smithfield Market (wholesale meat) and Billingsgate Market (fish). National markets such as these developed as the UK economy moved from an agricultural to an industrialised focus.

Lloyd's is an insurance market where businesses from all over the world can find insurance for risks in exchange for payment of a premium. The premium is based on the sum insured and the nature of the risk. As the UK economy has developed from a national economy to part of the global economy, Lloyd's has also developed into a global insurance market. The Lloyd's market brings in business from over 180 countries and has its own offices and staff in over 25 different countries.

Lloyd's uses a range of IT systems to process the millions of risks dealt with every year. Its website www.lloyds.com provides information on the types of insurance available in the market. Lloyd's syndicates underwrite a huge range of businesses and projects including oilrigs, banks, satellites and airlines. The global business environment is constantly evolving.

Lloyd's underwriters are famous for recognising new insurance opportunities and requirements, and for meeting them. For example, the Lloyd's market provides cover for offshore wind farms, an area of the energy industry that the UK government is planning to expand.